Hu Jintao congratulates Medvedev on becoming Russia's ruling party chief
Chinese President Hu Jintao has congratulated Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev on being elected chairman of the ruling United Russia party.
In his congratulatory message, Hu Jintao, who is also general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, said he hoped the United Russia party could make even greater accomplishments in the cause of shaping a strong and prosperous Russia.
He also said China would like to work with the Russian side in further expanding bilateral pragmatic cooperation and strategic coordination so as to quicken the pace of development of the two nations, and to promote peace, stability and development in the region and the world.
UN chief condemns Syria killings
UN Secretary-general Ban Ki- moon has strongly condemned an incident of massive killings in a village in Syria.
It was reported that more than 92 people were killed in the incident. Syrian opposition groups said it was caused by an artillery barrage by government forces on Friday evening. However, Syria's state media blamed the massacre on "armed terrorist groups. "
In a statement released in New York, Ban called the killings an "appalling and brutal crime," adding that "those responsible for perpetrating this crime must be held to account."
The statement reiterated that all violence in all forms in Syria must cease.
Iranian envoy criticizes Western media for politicizing technical issue in IAEA report
Iran's Ambassador to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Ali-Asghar Soltanieh criticized Western media "attempts to politicize a normal technical issue" in the latest IAEA report on Tehran's "nuclear energy program.
The IAEA said in its latest report on Iranian nuclear issue that its inspectors have detected traces of up to 27-percent-purity enriched uranium in the country's Fordow nuclear fuel enrichment plant.
Soltanieh criticized Western media hype and said " as mentioned in the IAEA report, the issue is a normal technical subject that is being investigated by experts,"
He said highlighting and politicizing a technical issue indicates certain efforts to sully the atmosphere of constructive cooperation between Iran and the IAEA.
Confucius Institutes welcome U.S. decision to continue courses
Confucius Institute Headquarters has welcomed a decision made by the U.S. government to allow all Confucius Institutes in the country to continue with their courses.
Xu Lin, head of Confucius Institute Headquarters, or Hanban, says the new directive showed the U.S. government's official recognition of the Confucius Institutes.
Xu says the headquarters welcomes the quick move of the U.S. Department of State to fix the mistake.
China launches telecommunication satellite
China successfully sent a telecommunication satellite, "ChinaSat 2A," into orbit last night, using a Long March-3B carrier rocket launched from the southwestern Xichang Satellite Launch Center.
The satellite, developed by China Academy of Space Technology, will be used to meet the demands for China's radio and TV broadcasting and broadband multimedia transmissions.
All 78 rescued from cable cars in Guangxi
All of the 78 people trapped in cable cars at a mountain scenic resort in the city of Guilin, Guangxi Zhang Autonomous Region have been rescued.
Rescuers say the trapped people had all been rescued by Saturday and there were no casualties..The accident was probably caused by power failure although it is still under investigation.
Chinese banks encouraged to seek private investment
China's banking regulator says the country's financial institutions should focus on attracting more private investment.
It says banks are encouraged to gain investment from well-managed private enterprises of good repute.
China broadens it weather forecasts in the South China Sea
Hainan's meteorological bureau says it has started issuing weather forecasts for two islands and one reef in the South China Sea.
The bureau in the southern island province says it started forecasts for Yongxing and Huangyan islands as well as Yongshu Reef on May 16.
The local meteorological station says it is important to improve weather forecasts for the South China Sea to help ensure the safety of the passing vessels and offshore production.