Chinese president meets Australian PM
Chinese President Xi Jinping has met with visiting Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott in Beijing.
Xi Jinping expressed gratitude for Australia's search for the missing Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370, adding that China will continue searching for the flight and stay in close communication with the Australian side.
He said China is willing to work with Australia to push forward their strategic partnership and maintain close high-level exchanges and multi-level dialogues so as to increase political mutual trust.
For his part, Abbott also thanked Xi Jinping for China's assistance in the international hunt for the jet.
Tony Abbott has expressed confidence that searchers now know, withing the range of some kilometers, the position of missing flight MH370's black-box.
EU, U.S., Russia and Ukraine to hold meeting in Geneva to tackle Ukraine crisis
EU, U.S., Russia and Ukraine are going to hold a meeting in Geneva on April 17 as part of diplomatic efforts to tackle the Ukraine crisis.
Catherine Ashton, the European Union's foreign policy chief, is going to attend the talks, according to An EU statement.
The statement says the EU is fully engaged in the diplomatic efforts to deescalate the crisis in Ukraine and to find a political solution.
During the EU-U.S. Summit which was held in Brussels in March, the leaders of EU and U.S. vowed to support Ukraine and "intensify sanctions" on Russia if things "further escalating."
S.Korea, U.S. hold largest-ever air drill
South Korea and the United States have launched their largest-ever joint air exercise to beef up their combined strategic capability amid the escalating tensions over the peninsula.
The "Max Thunder" exercise, which will last from April 11 to 25 over the entire airspace of South Korea, involves 103 aircraft and 1,400 service personnel, according to the South Korean air force.
South Korea air force has sent some 50 fighter jets along with around 50 U.S. warplanes.
The air exercise, which is held twice a year through realistic trainings to simulate air battles between two sides, is the largest one of this kind in numerical terms.
An official from South Korea's air force command says the joint drill was to enhance the army's readiness amid the rising tensions over the Peninsular.
U.S. not to issue visa to Iran's new UN envoy: White House
The United States has informed Iran that it will not issue a visa to Hamid Aboutalebi, Tehran's newly appointed ambassador to the United Nations.
Lawmakers sponsoring the bill say that Aboutalebi should be banned from entry to the United States because he was a member of a militant group that held 52 Americans hostage when it seized the U.S. embassy in Tehran in 1979.
Iran's Foreign Ministry has slammed the U.S. stance on the new ambassador as "unacceptable."
Excessive benzene found in NW China tap water
More than 2.4 million people in a major city in northwest China are being affected by contaminated tap water.
Authorities in Lanzhou, capital of Gansu, have found the tap water in the downtown areas contain excessive levels of benzene.
The city government is warning people in Gansu not to drink the tap water in the next 24 hours.
An investigation into the source of the contamination is underway.
Residents have been rushing to supermarkets or community grocery stores to stock up on bottled water.
Forest fire rages in SW China
A forest fire is raging in southwest China's Sichuan Province, threatening a factory with explosive storage nearby.
Firefighters, forest police officers, armed police and a helicopter have been dispatched to battle the blaze.
The cause of the fire is being investigated.
Beijing mulls banning government money in tobacco purchases
Beijing has released a draft regulation that would ban public funds in the purchase of tobacco and smoking sets in the latest move to control smoking, according to the municipal legal affairs office.
The draft regulation on smoking control also prohibits providing or presenting tobacco products as gifts in any official or public activities.
It also bans vending machines from selling tobacco. Smoking promotions or advertising are also prohibited, according to the draft regulation, which is soliciting public opinion.
It is not yet known when the regulation will be put into effect.
Tesla Motors plans to build charging network across China
US electric car maker Tesla Motors has announced plans to establish a network of charging stations here in China to allow owners of its cars to power-up for free.
A Tesla Model S can travel 250-kilometers on a 20 minute recharge.
Tesla is expected to establish service centers in Beijing Shanghai, Hangzhou, Guangzhou and Shenzhen before this fall.
The company is also training third-party electricians to install charging facilities.
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