Hourly News updated 08:00 2011/10/29

 EU bailout fund chief holds talks in China 

Head of the European bailout fund visited Beijing amid speculation 1 that debt-stricken Europe is seeking help from the world's second-largest economy.
Klaus Regling, chief executive of the European Financial Stability Facility (EFSF), arrived Friday only a day after European leaders reached a deal at a Brussels summit to tackle the ongoing 2 debt crisis in Europe, which many fear may spark another global recession. 
The relief plan involves increasing the bailout fund's size from 440 billion euros to 1 trillion euros by raising more money from cash-rich investors 3, such as China.
 
Chinese state councilor urges good arrangements for China-U.S. high-level exchanges 
Chinese State Councilor Dai Bingguo has met with U.S. Deputy Secretary of State William Burns in Beijing, urging the two countries to make good arrangements for their high-level exchanges in the period ahead.
Dai Bingguo said China-U.S. relations have currently entered a crucial and key period of development.
Both sides should seriously implement 4 the important consensus 5 reached between the two state leaders on building a bilateral 6 cooperative partnership 7, sticking to the spirit of mutual 8 respect, equality and mutual benefit and properly settling disputes in a bid to maintain the sound development of China-U.S. relations.
He also reiterated 9 China's principled stance on issues involving Taiwan.
 
NATO formally decides to end Libya mission, Chinese ambassador back in Tripoli
NATO has formally decided 10 to cease operations in Libya by Monday, seven months after the military alliance assumed full control of the campaign.
The decision came one day after the UN Security Council voted unanimously to pass a resolution that will terminate the no-fly zone at the end of this month.
Meanwhile, China's Foreign Ministry 11 has announced that the country's Ambassador to Libya Wang Wang-sheng has returned to Libya's capital, Tripoli.
 
China to donate 1 mln U.S. dollars to quake-hit Turkey: FM spokeswoman 
China says it will donate one million U.S. dollars to quake-hit Turkey.
Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Jiang Yu says China has paid great attention to the situation since a 7.2-magnitude earthquake hit eastern Turkey a week ago. 
The Red Cross Society of China has also donated 50,000 U.S. dollars, and China will continue to offer emergency relief aid to Turkey.
According to the Turkish government, 570 people were dead and more than two thousand injured after the powerful earthquake struck the province of Van in eastern Turkey on Sunday.
 
UN steps up relief efforts in Thailand against worsening flood disaster
The United Nations will provide 20,000 insecticide-treated mosquito nets in temporary shelters and other areas in flood-hit Thailand in a bid to protect people from dengue fever and other mosquito-borne diseases, as weather forecasts predict more heavy rainfall over the weekend.
Unusually heavy rainfall in Thailand has resulted in the worst flooding in more than five decades, with 370 people reportedly killed and vast swathes of the country's 29 provinces, including the nation's capital of Bangkok, inundated 12. More than 2.1 million people are estimated to be affected 13.
 
China's top political advisor 14 calls for further Sino-Dutch cooperation 
China's top political advisor Jia Qinglin says China and the Netherlands should deepen cooperation in order to boost common prosperity.
Speaking at a luncheon 15 attended by over 250 Chinese and Dutch entrepreneurs in the Hague, Jia Qinglin called on both countries to deepen cooperation in the modern agricultural sector 16, promote trade facilitation and expand bilateral trade volume and work together to tackle climate change. 
The Netherlands is the second stop after Greece of Jia Qinglin's three-nation European tour, which will also take him to Germany.
 
China urges resolving Iran nuclear issue through diplomatic negotiations 17 
China says it will continue to maintain close communication with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and unswervingly adhere to resolving the Iranian nuclear issue through diplomatic negotiations.
Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Jiang Yu says China has always supported the work of the IAEA and has kept regular communication with IAEA Director General Yukiya Amano. 
Jiang Yu says China and Russia recently presented their shared views about the Iranian nuclear issue to the IAEA chief.Both countries hope the IAEA will remain independent and professional with an objective and impartial 18 attitude, and cautiously resolve the issue based on facts.
 
China introduces first national plan on groundwater pollution control 
China has introduced the country's first national plan on groundwater pollution control, urging a combination of legal, economic, technological 19 and administrative 20 measures for groundwater protection.
The ministries 21 of environmental protection, land and resources, and water resources have announced at a press conference that the State Council, or China's Cabinet, has already approved the national plan on groundwater pollution control for 2011-2020. 
China will invest a total of over 34 billion yuan (over 5 billion U.S. dollars) on the prevention and treatment of pollution in the country's groundwater in 2011-2020, according to the plan.