BBC Monitoring International Reports articles from August 2006

BBC Monitoring International Reports archives from August 2006

BBC Monitoring News Diary for Thursday 31 August 2006.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) Main stories at 0100 gmt IRAN: Deadline set by Security Council resolution for Iran to suspend all uranium enrichment-related and reprocessing activities or risk sanctions; International...

Chinese news agency details HK journalist sentence.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) Text of report in English by official Chinese news agency Xinhua (New China News Agency) Beijing, 31 August: The Beijing No 2 Intermediate People's Court Thursday sentenced Hong Kong...

Summary of Russian press for Thursday 31 Aug 06.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) Kommersant 1. Yuliya Kulikova and Mariya Cherkasova article says the Kommersant publishing house has been sold to the head of the Metalloinvest holding company, Alisher Usmanov. The...

Visiting Russian official praises cooperation with China.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) Text of report by Russian Channel One TV on 31 August [Presenter] Russian First Deputy Prime Minister Dmitriy Medvedev, currently on a working visit to Beijing, gave an interview to Chinese...

Russia beefs up coast guard grouping in Far East.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) Text of report by Russia TV on 31 August Two escort ships - the Magadanets and the Karelia - have arrived in Kamchatka from the Baltic port of Vysotsk to reinforce the coast guard grouping...

Eritrean president rejects foreign troops in Sudan's Darfur region.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) Excerpt from report by Sudanese TV on 30 August [Presenter] During the visit to Asmara by the first vice-president [Lt-Gen Salva Kiir Mayardit], Eritrean President Isayas Afewerki renewed...

Yemeni president begins re-election campaign.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) Excerpt from report in English by Yemeni news agency Saba website The presidential candidate for the General People's Congress, Ali Abdallah Saleh, has begun his election campaigns on...

China jails Hong Kong journalist Ching Cheong for spying.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) Text of report in English by official Chinese news agency Xinhua (New China News Agency) The Beijing No 2 Intermediate People's Court Thursday [31 August] sentenced Hong Kong resident Ching...

Mine explosion kills cattle on Tajik-Uzbek border.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) Excerpt from report by Tajik news agency Asia-Plus website Dushanbe, 31 August: An anti-personnel mine went off on the Tajik-Uzbek border last Sunday, 27 August, killing over 70 head of...

Chief prosecutor, envoy voice concern about high crime rate in Russian Far East.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) The crime situation in the Far Eastern Federal District is causing concern, Russian Prosecutor-General Yuriy Chayka said on 31 August at the interdepartmental coordinating meeting in Khabarovsk,...

South Africa turns down Ugandan rebels mediation request.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) Text of report by Henry Mukasa and Agencies entitled "South Africa snubs LRA" published by Ugandan newspaper The New Vision website on 31 August South Africa has turned down a request by...

Azeri editor downplays allegations on extortion by killed journalist.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) An Azerbaijani editor has downplayed the allegations that the murdered editor-in-chief of Monitor magazine, Elmar Huseynov, had extorted 5,000 dollars from a businessman, Turan news agency...

Kenyans held in Ugandan military camp starving - Catholic church.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) Text of report by Kenyan newspaper The Standard website on 31 August Forty Kenyans held captive at a Ugandan military camp are starving, the Justice and Peace Commission of the Catholic...

Rwandan president, South African ministers discuss bilateral ties.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) Excerpt from report in English by Rwandan radio on 31 August [Presenter] President Paul Kagame yesterday received at Village Urugwiro [president's office] three South African ministers -...

Russian radio profiles buyer of leading newspaper.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) Excerpt from report by Russian Ekho Moskvy radio on 31 August [Presenter] The acquisition of the Kommersant publishing house is a transitional deal, the Gazeta newspaper says today quoting...

Ugandan army marks "safe corridors" for rebels heading to southern Sudan.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) Text of report by Chris Ocowun entitled "UPDF withdraws" published by Ugandan newspaper The New Vision website on 31 August The Uganda People's Defence Forces (UPDF) started pulling out of...

Guinea: National broadcaster set to start new TV news programme.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) Text of report by Aly Leno entitled "Society: RTG: Second trial of programmed TV news for this Thursday at new Koloma House" published by Guineenews website on 29 August Since last Monday...

Kazakh foreign minister in Turkmenistan for border talks.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) Text of report by Interfax-Kazakhstan news agency Asgabat, 31 August: Turkmen President Saparmyrat Nyyazow received Kazakh Foreign Minister Kasymzhomart Tokayev today. Tokayev is in Asgabat...

BBC Monitoring Pan-Arab TV headlines 0500 gmt, 31 Aug 06.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) The following is a selection of Pan-Arab TV headlines from bulletins broadcast at 0400, 0430 and 0500 gmt on 31 Aug 06 AL-JAZEERA TV HEADLINES 0400 GMT: US envoy to UN says Sudan may agree...

\E\I\I\aBBC Monitoring quotes from Indonesian press 31 Aug 06.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) The following is a selection of quotes from editorials and commentaries published in 31 August editions of Indonesian newspapers available to BBC Monitoring: Iran Jakarta's Suara...

Uzbek leader remembers Stalinist victims.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) Uzbek President Islom Karimov on 31 August attended a ceremony in the capital, Tashkent, to remember the victims of the Stalin-era repressions, the Uzbek radio channel Yoshlar reported later in...

String of bomb blasts hit commercial banks in Thai south.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) Text of report by Thai newspaper Phuchatkan website on 31 August Hat Yai News Centre: Urgent!! Bomb explosions took place at 10 different locations and "commercial banks" in the provincial...

BBC Monitoring quotes from Malaysian, Singaporean press 31 Aug 06.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) The following is a selection of quotes from editorials and commentaries carried in 30-31 August 2006 website editions of Malaysian and Singaporean Malay, Chinese and English-language newspapers...

Brazil's Lula praises "mutually beneficial" cooperation with China.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) Text of report by Wang Yongzhi carried by Chinese news agency Zhongguo Xinwen She Brasilia, 30 August: Brazilian President Lula said here in Brasilia on 30 August that the mutually...

Kazakh-Turkmen border deal comes into force.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) Text of report by Interfax-Kazakhstan news agency Asgabat, 31 August: Kazakh Foreign Minister Kasymzhomart Tokayev and his Turkmen counterpart Rasit Meredow today signed a protocol on...

Uganda to ask International Criminal Court not to arrest rebels.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) Text of report by F. Ahimbisibwe and Patrick Jaramogi entitled "Uganda to appeal to ICC for LRA leaders" published by Ugandan newspaper The New Vision website on 31 August The government...

Israeli troops kill Al-Aqsa Brigades leader, wound four others in Nablus.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) Text of report in English by Palestinian Ramattan News Agency website Nablus, 31 August: Israeli Special forces assassinated on 31 August Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades leader Fadi Qufayshah, and...

Top Chinese official urges closer economic ties with Brazil.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) Text of report in English by official Chinese news agency Xinhua (New China News Agency) Brasilia, 30 August: China's top legislator Wu Bangguo on Wednesday [30 August] called for closer...

Two troops injured, rebel killed in Chechnya.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) Text of report by Russian news agency Interfax Moscow, 31 August: Two servicemen of the Interior Ministry's Internal Troops have stepped on anti-personnel mines in Chechnya on 30 August,...

Many casualties, at least one death in Thai south blasts - Xinhua.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) Text of report in English by official Chinese news agency Xinhua (New China News Agency) Bangkok, 31 August: Thai southern Muslim militants launched at least nine bomb attacks...

Azeri minister says dispatch of peacekeepers to Lebanon not on agenda.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) Excerpt from unattributed report by Azerbaijani newspaper Ekspress on 31 August headlined "The dispatch of soldiers to Lebanon is not a subject of discussion" "The dispatch of Azerbaijani...

Ugandan rebel leader reportedly accuses state of violating truce.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) Text of report by Samuel Egadu, Frank Nyakairu and Emmanuel Gyezaho entitled "Kony protests safe routes" published by Ugandan newspaper Daily Monitor website on 31 August, subheadings as...

Palestinian leaders discuss abducted Israeli soldier, financial problems.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) Text of report in English by Palestinian Ramattan News Agency website Gaza, 30 August: Palestinian sources close to President Mahmud Abbas said on 30 August that Abbas held an important...

(Corr) Uzbek leader remembers Stalinist victims.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) (Correcting the word "television" to "radio" in paragraph two. A corrected version of the item follows.) Uzbek President Islom Karimov on 31 August attended a ceremony in the capital,...

BBC Monitoring quotes from Slovak press 31 August 06.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) The following is a selection of quotes from editorials and commentaries published in the 31 August editions of the main Slovak newspapers: Iran's nuclear programme Pravda (centre-left)...

Disputed area at Rwanda-Burundi border declared "no-man's land".
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) Text of report in English by Rwandan radio on 31 August As tension worsened regarding land dispute on Rwanda-Burundi border of Nasare [phonetic], officials from both sides have finally...

Rwanda, South Africa sign economic cooperation agreement.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) Text of report in English by Rwandan radio on 31 August The governments of Rwanda and South Africa signed a memorandum of understanding on economic cooperation during the fourth session of...

BBC Monitoring quotes from the Turkish press 31 Aug 06.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) Sending Turkish troops to Lebanon Bugun (centrist) "This country, I mean Turkey, has received an 'appeal from the United Nations' in the form of an invitation to a 'joint international...

Ammonia leakage from abandoned van reported in Russian Far East.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) Text of report by Russian Ren TV on 31 August [Presenter Tatyana Limanova] Some ammonia has leaked from an abandoned refrigerator van in Bering Island. The van was supposed to be scrapped....

Polish left-wing party to form centre-left coalition.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) Text of report in English by Polish news agency PAP Warsaw, 30 August: The Democratic Left Alliance's (SLD) National Council decided [on] Wednesday [30 August] to form a coalition for the...

Kyrgyz leader pledges politically stable state in Independence Day message.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) Kyrgyz President Kurmanbek Bakiyev has pledged that Kyrgyzstan will become a politically stable country, where there will be civil accord. Bakiyev was speaking from a rostrum in the central...

School bombing reportedly averted in Russian Dagestan.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) Text of report by Russian Ekho Moskvy radio on 31 August A terrorist attack has been averted in a school in Dagestan by border guards, reports say. According to ITAR-TASS [news agency], two...

South Korea: New secretary appointed for Military Armistice Commission.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) Text of report in English by South Korean news agency Yonhap Seoul, 31 August: The US-led United Nations Command (UNC) has appointed Col John W. Towers as new secretary of its Military...

US says no information on visit by North Korea's Kim Jong-il to China.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) Text of report in English by South Korean news agency Yonhap Washington, 30 August: The United States has yet to confirm whether North Korean leader Kim Jong-il is or will shortly be on a...

China agrees to repatriate South Korean POWs to Seoul who escaped North.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) Text of report in English by South Korean news agency Yonhap Seoul, 31 August: The Chinese government has agreed to hand over South Korean prisoners of war who escape from North Korea to...

Somali Speaker in talks with Sudanese leader in Khartoum.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) Text of report by Somali Puntland-based independent SBC radio website on 31 August The Speaker of parliament, Sharif Hasan Shaykh Adan, and the [government] delegation he is heading have...

Polish official says Weimar Triangle summit to be held in December.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) Text of report in English by Polish news agency PAP Warsaw, 30 August: The Weimar Triangle summit will take place in December, Andrzej Krawczyk responsible for international affairs at the...

Russia's Dagestan to step up security at "important facilities".
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) President Mukhu Aliyev has instructed high-ranking officials in the southern Russian republic of Dagestan to tighten security at important facilities. He presided over a meeting of the...

Iranian president criticizes US for rejecting open debate proposal.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) Text of report by Iranian TV news channel on 31 August Iranian President Mahmud Ahmadinezhad has criticized the US President George W Bush for rejecting his invitation to an open debate. He...

Iran press: President should have asked Bush to debate issues relating to Iran.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) Text of editorial by Iranian newspaper Aftab-e Yazd website on 30 August About three months ago Mahmud Ahmadinezhad wrote a detailed letter stating his views on world affairs to the...

BBC Monitoring quotes from the Romanian press 31 Aug 06.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) The following is a selection of quotes from editorials and commentaries published in 31 August Internet editions of the main Romanian newspapers: Italy/Hezbollah Cotidianul (centrist)...

South Korea to open three new embassies later this year.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) Text of report in English by South Korean news agency Yonhap Seoul, 31 August: South Korea plans to open embassies in Azerbaijan, Slovakia, and Honduras later this year as part of efforts to...

South Korea's Uri Party to support bill on return of abductees in North.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) Text of report in English by South Korean news agency Yonhap Seoul, 31 August: South Korea's governing Uri Party on Thursday [31 August] agreed to support a government bill on the return...

Six stand trial in Kyrgyzstan on charges banned group membership.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) Excerpt from report by Kyrgyz public educational TV on 30 August Six members of religious and extremist organizations have gone on trial in [the southern town] of Osh. On the dock are five...

China says journalist "voluntarily confessed" to spying.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) Text of report in English by official Chinese news agency Xinhua (New China News Agency) Beijing, 31 August: The Beijing No 2 Intermediate People's Court Thursday [31 August] has sentenced...

US nuclear envoy to visit Asia to discuss six-way North Korean nuclear talks.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) Excerpt from report in English by South Korean news agency Yonhap Washington, 30 August: The top US envoy to the North Korea nuclear negotiations heads out to Asia this weekend to talk with...

Iran press: Deputy oil minister on construction of more refineries.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) Text of report by Iranian newspaper E'temad website on 30 August;subheadings asp ublished The economic desk: Yesterday at about mid-day, after opening the fiber optics project, Deputy Oil...

Ukrainian leader to visit Azerbaijan on 7-8 September - agency.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) Text of report by Azerbaijani news agency Turan Kiev, 31 August: Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko will pay an official visit to Azerbaijan on 7-8 September, the Ukrainian presidential...

Israeli forces end Gaza operation after causing "massive damage".
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) Excerpt from report in English by Palestinian Ramattan News Agency website Gaza, 31 August: RNA's [Ramattan News Agency] reporter said that the Israeli army started to pull out of...

Two rockets hit Afghan capital, no casualties.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) Text of report by Pakistan-based Afghan Islamic Press news agency Kabul, 31 August: Two rockets have hit Kabul city, but have caused no casualties. Confirming the incident, the Interior...

Japanese PM returns to Tokyo after Central Asia trip.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) Text of report in English by Japanese news agency Kyodo Tokyo, 31 August: Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi returned to Tokyo on Thursday [31 August] morning after winding up a four-day trip...

Russian foreign minister calls on Japan to stop poaching.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) Text of report by Russian news agency Interfax-AVN website Moscow, 30 August: During a meeting with Japan's senior vice minister of foreign affairs, Katsutoshi Kaneda, on Wednesday [30...

Switzerland used in massive EU tax fraud scam.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) Text of report in English by Swiss Radio International's Swissinfo website on 31 August Criminal gangs appear to be increasingly using Switzerland in schemes to defraud European Union...

Hong Kong can not interfere with mainland law enforcement - chief executive.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) Text of report by Hong Kong government website on 31 August Following is a transcript of remarks (English portion) given by the chief executive, Mr Donald Tsang, at a media session on the...

President reiterates Iran's commitment to safeguarding "rights".
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) Text of report by Iranian TV news channel on 31 August Iranian President Mahmud Ahmadinezhad has said that the country would not forfeit its right. He told a large gathering at Orumiyeh,...

UN continues repatriation of DRCongolese refugees from Tanzania.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) Text of report by UN regional information network IRIN on 30 August Nairobi, 30 August: Refugees in Tanzania started returning home again to the DRCongo on Wednesday [30 August], after a...

Lao PM holds talks with Ho Chi Minh City leaders.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) Text of report in English by Vietnamese news agency VNA website HCM [Ho Chi Minh] City: Lao Prime Minister Bouason Boupphavan spoke highly of cooperative programmes between the capital city...

Australia "working closely" with East Timor to recapture prison escapees.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) Text of report by Radio Australia on 31 August [Newsreader] Australian Foreign Minister Alexander Downer says Australian security forces are working closely with East Timorese authorities...

Turkish army commander rules out "general amnesties" for rebel Kurds.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) Excerpt from report by Turkish news agency Anatolia Ankara, 30 August: Stating that it was important to reduce terrorism to a minimum, Commander of Land Forces Gen Ilker Basbug said: "First...

Iranian official in Japan says Tehran ready to negotiate over nuclear standoff.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) Text of report in English by Japanese news agency Kyodo Tokyo, 31 August: An Iranian official said Thursday [31 August] his country is ready to negotiate with the international community to...

UN official warns Darfur conflict could spread to central Africa.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) Text of report by UN regional information network IRIN on 30 August New York, 30 August: If the crisis in Sudan's Darfur region is not resolved soon, the conflict could spread deeper into...

Suicide attack targets police convoy in Afghan Zabol Province.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) Text of report by Pakistan-based Afghan Islamic Press news agency Kandahar, 31 August: A suicide attack has been carried out on a police convoy in Zabol Province. An eyewitness in the...

Mines found at school in Russia's Dagestan pose no danger - police official.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) Text of report by Russian news agency ITAR-TASS Makhachkala, 31 August: The mines which were found this morning in the Dagestani town of Izberbash are training aids, the chief of the...

Russia: Independent Kommersant newspaper sold to Gazprom interests, radio.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) Excerpt from report by Russian Ekho Moskvy radio on 31 August [Presenter] The acquisition of the Kommersant publishing house is a transitional deal, the Gazeta newspaper says today quoting...

UAE's Al-Arabiya TV to show "a new view" of 9/11.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) Al-Arabiya Television on 31 August carries a promotion for a new programme on the 9/11 2001 events, which it says it will air soon. The promotion shows the moment one of the hijacked planes...

Germany: Polish Speaker says Baltic gas pipeline aims at dividing EU.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) Text of report in English by Polish news agency PAP Warsaw, 30 August: Germany is aware of Polish arguments against the construction of the Northern Gas pipeline. This means that it does not...

Tsang says Hong Kong can not interfere with mainland judicial process - radio.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) Text of report by Radio TV Hong Kong Radio 3 audio website on 31 August [Newsreader] The chief executive, Donald Tsang, says the government has been very concerned over Mr Ching's case...

Kazakh southern region gets new police chief.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) Excerpt from report by Interfax-Kazakhstan news agency Taldykorgan, 31 August: Bagdat Maykeyev has been appointed the head of the interior department of Almaty Region (southeastern...

BBC Monitoring quotes for Middle East Arabic press for 31Aug 06.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) The following is a selection of quotes from editorials and commentaries published in the 12 June 2006 editions of Arabic language newspapers in the Middle East and North Africa, as available to...

Lebanese press highlights 29 Aug 06.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) The following lists selected items from the Lebanese press on the Internet on 29 August 1. Al-Anwar newspaper website a. Report on British MP George Galloway's meetings with President...

\E\I\I\aAustralia, China hold talks on free trade deal.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) Text of report by Radio Australia on 31 August [Newsreader] The latest round of negotiations on a free trade agreement between Australia and China have begun in Beijing. John Taylor...

Azeri pressure group calls for war with Armenia over Karabakh.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) Text of report by Azerbaijani TV station ANS on 30 August The Karabakh Liberation Organization demands that the authorities start a war against Armenia. The organization has issued a...

Albanian foreign minister calls for closer ties with Macedonia.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) Text of report in English by Albanian news agency ATA Tirana, 30 August: Foreign Minister Besnik Mustafaj congratulates his Macedonian counterpart, Antonio Milososki, for his nomination to...

Poland: New border crossing with Lithuania opens on 1 September.
August 31, 2006... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) Text of report in English by Polish news agency PAP Suwalki, 30 August: A new border pass to Lithuania will open Friday in Berzniki by Sejny in Poland's eastern Podlaskie Province. The...