英闻天下——267 Q&A with Prof. Ruan Zongze on DPRK's 3rd Nuke Test

For more on North Korea's latest nuclear test, I spoke earlier with Professor Ruan Zongze, deputy head of the China Institute of International Studies, a think tank of the Chinese Foreign Ministry.

英闻天下——266 Stolen Matisse to Return to Venezuela

A painting by Henri Matisse stolen more than a decade ago from a museum in Venezuela will soon be returned to the country. The painting, Odalisque in Red Pants, is to be returned from the United States within three to five weeks. Raul Grioni is presi

英闻天下——272 Syrian Minister: Ready for Talks with Opposition

Syrian minister of national reconciliation says he is willing to meet the Syrian opposition leader Moaz Alkhatib to begin peace talks. Ali Haidar however, says the dialogue shouldn't include any pre-existing conditions. There are no pre-conditions or

英闻天下——248 Tunisia Ruling Party Rebuffs PM Plan

Members of Tunisia's ruling Ennahda Party are blasting a plan by their party chief and prime minister to dismiss the government. Prime Minister Hamdi Jebali has decided to form a technocrat government in the wake of massive demonstrations following t

英闻天下——249 Supreme Leader Rejects Nuclear Talk Proposals

Iran's Supreme Leader is rejecting direct talks with the U.S. The rejection comes after U.S Vice President Joe Biden proposed one-to-one talks over Tehran's nuclear program. Ayatollah Ali Khamenei: Negotiations as a tactic, talk as a tactic, a gestur

英闻天下——253 Snake-related Products Popular in China

A gold cobra, shinning shimmering, splendid sits in a locked, glass display case in a Hong Kong jewelry shop! It will take a chunk out of your wallet, setting you back some $25,600 U.S. dollars. It took artisans about a month to make the snake, which

英闻天下——254 Cautious Credit Card Consumption Traps

In recent years, various banks have been competing to issue credit cards, whose numbers have been increasing sharply in China. Such a high increase in the number pf credit cards has created a situation with some people holding a number of credit card

英闻天下——255 Preparations for Spring Festival in Full Swing

Grocery stores are crowded with people in the days leading up to the Spring Festival. The weeklong Lunar New Year holiday will kick off Saturday with New Year's Eve celebrated traditionally with family. Shoppers are buying red lanterns, scrolls with

英闻天下——259 NASA Says Asteroid Will Get Closer to Earth

NASA has announced that an Asteroid will pass closer to Earth than the TV satellites that surround the planet. NASA says that the celestial visitor has no chance of impacting the Earth and is known as 2012 DA14. A group of amatuer astronomers discove

英闻天下——236 Review of Air Pollution Control Rules Start Soon

Municipal authorities here in Beijing are preparing to start a review of the air pollution control rules later this year. A draft of the new rules, thought to be the strictest ever, is being put out for public consumption until this Friday. The rules

英闻天下——233 Assad Urged to Respond to Dialogue Initiative

Head of the main Syrian opposition coalition in exile is calling on President Bashar al-Assad to clarify his call for dialogue. Moaz al-Khatib has said he is willing to accept talks with Assad, provided the Syrian government releases detainees and re

英闻天下——234 Iran Urges U.S. to Start Dialogue

Iranian President Mahmouad Ahmadinejad is calling on the US to put aside its stick if it wanted to start talks with Iran under fair conditions. Ahmadinejad, speaking to a Beirut-based TV station, says his country is open for talks with the U.S. on it

英闻天下——235 Mali Operation to be Handed over to UN: Biden

Mali's Foreign Affairs minister says his country is no Afghanistan. Tieman Coulibaly, speaking while in Paris, says the military intervention in his country is fighting a global threat. We must continue pushing them up north and then over there, ther

英闻天下——247 China Criticizes Japan for Tarnishing Its Image

The Chinese government is accusing Japan of intentionally tarnishing China's image. The accusation comes following reports that a Chinese vessel put a radar firing lock on a Japanese naval patrol in the East China Sea this week. Chinese foreign minis

英闻天下——246 Senate Delays Vote On Hagel Nomination

The US Senate has in a surprise move postponed the vote on Chuck Hagel's nomination to be the nation's defense secretary. Carl Levin, Chairman of the Armed Services Committee issued a statement saying there wouldn't be a vote this week. Initially, th

英闻天下——244 France Considers Mali Withdrawal from March

France has announced it may pull troops out of Mali as early as next month. It comes as troops secure the key northern city of Kidal. French troops are also expected to hand over Timbuktu to African forces this week. Meanwhile France is calling for t

英闻天下——243 Thousands Protest in Tunis

Tunisia's Prime Minister has announced plans to form a new government of technocrats to lead the country until elections can take place. The move follows the assassination of an opposition leader which has sparked widespread protests in the North Afr

英闻天下——242 China Timetables Fuel Quality Upgrade

The State Council, China's cabinet, has released its timetable to upgrade fuel quality nationwide before 2017. The new standard for petrol and diesel, with sulphur content within 10 parts per million, is expected to be in practice nationwide by 2017.

英闻天下——241 UAE Top Lender Launches Chinese RMB Accounts

Emirates NBD, the biggest lender by assets in the United Arab Emirates, has launched Renminbi-denominated accounts and deposits. The bank says the move is meant to help small and medium enterprises in the Kingdom which do business with China. There a

英闻天下——240 Income Distribution Lacks Timetable and Details: Economists

A number of economists here in China are suggesting the government's newly-unveiled plans to tackle income distribution lack a clear timetable. The same economists are also warning the implementation of the plan, which is designed to bridge the count