The unmanned Shenzhou-8 spacecraft is now in orbit, after being launched shortly before 6 this morning from China's western desert.

The Commander-in-chief of China's space program is Chang Wanquan.

The spacecraft is set to dock with Tiangong-1 experimental space laboratory in the next couple of days.

They will then separate after flying together for 12 days, before then performing a second docking.

The practice maneuvers are designed to try to help create a manned Chinese space station by 2020.

 

 

Two earthquakes rattle NW China within hours

Two moderate earthquakes have struck in northwest China this morning.

The latest one, a magnitude 6.0, hit at around 8:20 this morning in the northwestern part of Xinjiang.

The epicenter of the quake, which hit at a reportedly shallow depth of around 10-kilometers, is about 100-kilometers southwest of the community of Yining, in a somewhat populated area of Xinjiang near the border with Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan.

This follows another moderate earthquake, which hit on the border area between Sichuan, Gansu and Shaanxi.

That one, a 5.4-magnitude quake, struck just before 6am at a depth of just 16-kilometers.

So far, no damage or injuries have been reported from either earthquake.

 

 

Chinese president in Salzburg to continue Austria visit

Chinese President Hu Jintao is now in Salzburg, as part of his state visit to Austria.

The President has arrived in Salzburg, after meeting in Vienna with top Austrian leaders, including his counterpart Heinz Fischer.

Hu Jintao and Fischer have overseen the signing of a number of agreements covering areas including trade, the environment and culture.

As part of his time in Salzburg, Hu Jintao is set to visit the family home of 18th century composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.

Following his time in Austria, Hu Jintao will then head to France later this week for the G20 meeting in Cannes.

 

 

BASIC countries meet to discuss climate change

China says the commitment by developed countries in the second phase of the Kyoto Protocol is critical to the success of the Durban climate change conference, which will be held in South Africa next month.

China's foreign ministry spokesman Hong Lei.

"China believes that the extension of the Kyoto Protocol and the setting of targets as soon as possible by developed countries during the second phase of their commitment are vital to the success of the Durban conference. China will have in-depth discussions with the ministers of the relevant countries."

Hong's comments come as officials from the four "BASIC" countries, namely Brazil, South Africa, India and China, are meeting here in Beijing.

The meeting is widely believed to focus on the extension of the Kyoto Protocol, which will expire by the end of next year.

 

 

UNESCO grants Palestine full membership

The UN cultural body UNESCO has voted to grant full membership to Palestine.

China is among the countries that voted in favor of the Palestinian acceptance into UNESCO.

Israel, the United States, Canada and Germany voted to reject the Palestinian assertion.

In the wake of the vote, the United States is now cancelling its funding for UNESCO, which accounts for a fifth of UNESCO's annual budget, noting that it's 60-million US dollar installment of funding will not be forthcoming.

 

 

UN Security Council calls on Libya to check proliferation of arms

The UN Security Council has adopted a unanimous resolution, calling on the Libyan authorities to make sure the country does not become an arms bazaar.

All 15 members of the Security Council have approved the measure, which calls on the Libyan authorities "to take all necessary steps to prevent the proliferation of all arms, in particular man-portable surface-to-air missiles."

In recent weeks, NATO members have become increasingly concerned about the potential sale of Libyan stockpiles.

 

 

NTC elects new head of Libyan interim gov't

Libya's National Transitional Council has elected a new leader.

Abdel Rahim el-Keeb is replacing Mahmoud Jabril, who is fulfilling his earlier promise to step down following the declared liberation of Libya.

El-Keeb, who is also a member of the NTC in Tripoli, is a professor and electrical engineer at Tripoli University.

In taking over the position as interim Prime Minister, Keeb is being tasked with overseeing the reform of the transitional government from a war-time organization to one of rebuilding and re-establishing a working government.

 

 

Cyprus peace talks under way in New York

A second day of talks has been taking place on Long Island, New York about the potential reunification of Cyprus.

The talks are being moderated by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.

The UN's special advisor to the Cyprus issue, Alexander Downer, has described the first round of talks as productive.

However, the Greek Cyprot side is giving a much cooler interpretation, saying that the results of the talks can only be assessed after they're over.