A Chinese minister said today the situation in Syria should not be on the agenda at the upcoming G20 summit in Mexico because the meeting needs to stay focused on global economic issues, including the European debt crisis.

A blind legal activist who fled house arrest in rural China is under the protection of American officials and top-level talks are taking place between the countries about his fate, a human rights group said today.

South Korea accused North Korea today of firing a torpedo that sank a naval warship in March, killing 46 sailors in the country’s worst military disaster since the Korean War.

CHINA protested US president Barack Obama’s meeting with the Dalai Lama in strong terms yesterday, saying it “seriously harms” bilateral relations and demanding the US take steps to improve ties.

China and Japan began talks today on a dispute over gas deposits in the East China Sea amid increasingly strained relations.