Today's news headlines from around the world:
International Hearld Tribune (www.iht.com)
- Saudis Vow to Make Up Oil Shortfall by Baghdad
The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries
decided Tuesday to freeze current levels of oil production
and postpone until next month any emergency action to
compensate for a shortfall in the world market left by
Iraq's decision to halt oil exports.
- Confidence in President Is Waning in America
Public support for President George W. Bush has fallen in
recent weeks, led by eroding confidence in his energy
and environmental policies as well as growing concern
over the direction that Mr. Bush and the Republican Party
are leading the country, according to a Washington
Post-ABC News poll.
- Bush Administration's Tough Talk on IMF: So Far, Words Only
Profligate governments had better beware, and the same
goes for reckless international lenders and investors. In
the two major financial crises the Bush administration has
faced so far, in Turkey and in Argentina, the
administration has shown little stomach for letting
countries go broke or investors suffer drastic consequences
for bets gone wrong.
- The Designated Loser Slogs On in U.K. Race
For a designated loser, William Hague, whatever his
dowdy, dashless aura, has proved himself a sensible man,
reasonable when shrillness might have made more
electoral sense, direct in his analysis of the realities of a
candidacy marked for failure.
- U.S. Miscalculated on Tiananmen and Policy Toward Beijing, Envoy Reported
Just one month after the Tiananmen Square massacre in
June 1989, the U.S. ambassador to China told the
secretary of state that he believed that the administration
of the first President Bush had badly miscalculated its
policy toward Beijing, newly declassified government
documents show.
BBC (news.bbc.co.uk)
- Final blitz for party leaders
The three main party leaders are embarking on a hectic last day of campaigning across the UK.
- CIA chief to broker Mid-East talks
CIA director George Tenet heads to the Middle East as part of US attempts to broker peace between Israel and the Palestinians.
- Napster signs deal with music industry
Online song-swapping service Napster clinches a deal with three major record labels to distribute music over the internet.
- Police say Leeds riot 'planned'
Police say a night of disturbances in Leeds, believed linked to the arrest of an Asian man, was premeditated.
- Barrymore held in pool death probe
Detectives arrest comedian Michael Barrymore and two other men following the death of a man at the comedian's home in Essex.
New York Times (www.nytimes.com)
- As Senate Shifts, President Voices Optimism on Issues
President Bush reached out to Democrats and moderates in his party and, in an interview, expressed optimism about the future of his agenda.
- Energy Crisis in Brazil Brings Dimmer Lights and Altered Lives
Faced with a rapidly worsening energy crisis that threatens to cripple Latin America's largest economy, Brazil began six months of obligatory electricity rationing.
- C.I.A. Director Is Going to Israel in Effort to Maintain Calm
Reversing a policy set when he took office, President Bush is sending George Tenet to meet with leaders of Israeli and Palestinian security forces.
- Bush Moves Against Steel Imports; Trade Tensions Are Likely to Rise
President Bush took the first steps toward imposing broad restrictions on imported steel, handing a victory to American steel companies and unions
Panapress (African) (www.panapress.com)
- Commission amnesties killers of human rights activist
South Africa's Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) has granted amnesty to former senior apartheid security police officer Willem Schoon for his role in the 1981 murder of Durban human rights lawyer Griffiths Mxenge.
- Crime on the rise in Yaounde
At least nine armed raids or suspicious deaths were recorded in the Cameroonian capital, Yaounde, in the latter half of May, official sources conceded.
- South African opposition leader pays tribute to ANC
Tony Leon, leader of South Africa's official opposition Democratic Alliance (DA) Tuesday night paid tribute to the ruling African National Congress, acknowledging it has reduced the budget deficit, brought inflation under control and kept a rein on public spending.
- South Africans cry out against fuel hike
South Africans have angrily reacted to a 14-cent hike in the price of a litre of petrol, effective Wednesday.
China Daily (www.chinadaily.com.cn)
- Police arrest 3 staff after deadly kindergarten fire
Police detained three staff members at a kindergarten in Jiangxi Province after 13 toddlers died in a fire, amid allegations carers were staying away instead of watching the children.
- Trade Minister: China should enter WTO as developing country
Chinese foreign trade minister Shi Guangsheng said Tuesday that the stand of the Chinese government on its accession to the World Trade Organization (WTO) is "consistent and active."
- British riot police battle with Asian youths
Large gangs of Asian youths fought running battles with riot police in a suburb of the northern English city of Leeds on Wednesday, hurling petrol bombs and setting cars and a shop ablaze.
The violence flared in the mostly Asian and run-down suburb of Harehills on Tuesday night amid reports that police had used excessive force on a local Asian man arrested recently for a minor traffic offence, witnesses said.
- US Democrats take control of Senate
Democrats claimed control of the once-evenly divided Senate on Monday, as leaders in both parties promised bipartisanship. But the historic shift sets the stage for a showdown over President Bush's legislative agenda.
The Moscow Times (www.themoscowtimes.com)
- '02 Draft Budget Sent to Cabinet
Unlike this year, the Russian government intends to fully service its maturing debts in 2002.
- Primakov Pens Tell-All Memoirs
Former Prime Minister Yevgeny Primakov's new book provides some insights into his politcal career.
- Russian Berries to Quench EU Thirst
Chudo-Yagoda is the first Russian product to be given the green light by the British Retailer Consortium.
Happy Birthday to Roninspoon and katyana