US president Barack Obama has confirmed that the US will defend Japan in a potential confrontation with China over a set of disputed islands.

EU and Japanese trade officials said today that they were ready to step up their efforts in coming weeks to strike a world trade deal.

Security forces tried to disrupt plots by al Qaida-linked militants to stage attacks but failed to track them, setting off an alarm that influenced a decision to postpone a pair of Asian summits, officials said today.