Thailand is ready to assume the chair of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations even without a foreign minister and as its troops face off with Cambodia, ASEAN's secretary general said Tuesday. Thailand is to take over the rotating chair of the 10-nation regional bloc on Friday from Singapore after the group's foreign ministers conclude a series of annual meetings in the city-state.
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Bird flu chiefs from across Southeast Asia have agreed to assess the ability of their governments to respond to a deadly human pandemic of the virus, an Indonesian official said Wednesday. A three-day meeting of representatives from members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) agreed countries must be better organised to tackle a human-to-human outbreak of H5N1, Bayu Krisnamurthi told AFP. An Indonesian court Wednesday gave the youngest son of former dictator Suharto and state prosecutors nearly three weeks to reach a settlement over a 440-million-dollar civil graft case. Prosecutors acting on behalf of the finance ministry allege Hutomo "Tommy" Mandala Putra illegally sold off assets from troubled car importer PT Timor to five of his companies at a discount in order to avoid paying off state loans made to Timor during the 1997 Asian financial crisis. Indonesia's central bank chief said Wednesday he was hopeful Southeast Asia's biggest economy has already passed the worst of surging inflation triggered by a government fuel price hike. "Our hope is that (annual) inflation in July can be lower than in June. I hope that the (June figure of) 11.03 percent was the peak and that we are over that," Bank Indonesia (BI) chief Boediono told reporters. Thailand is ready to assume the chair of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations even without a foreign minister and as its troops face off with Cambodia, ASEAN's secretary general said Tuesday. Thailand is to take over the rotating chair of the 10-nation regional bloc on Friday from Singapore after the group's foreign ministers conclude a series of annual meetings in the city-state. A bag of body parts found on a roadside has led police to uncover an alleged string of serial killings that claimed the lives of five men, officers said Monday. Police unearthed four bodies Monday in a backyard at the East Java home of the parents of murder suspect Verry Idham Henyaksyah, also known as Ryan, Jakarta police general crimes chief Carlo Brix Tewu told AFP. Other Regional Stories
- EU, US pile pressure on emerging economies at WTO trade talks
- Bali bombers to be executed as soon as possible: attorney general
- Bali bombers may be executed before Ramadan: attorney general
- Moderate quake strikes off Indonesia's Java
- Six charged for raising Papua separatist flag: Indonesian police
- East Timor president sees bright future if country forgets past
- Indonesia executes three for murder: official
- Indonesian court gives go-ahead for Bali bombers' execution
- Bali bombers should not be executed: Timor leader
- Indonesian court gives go ahead for Bali bombers' execution
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The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) launched Tuesday a multi-million dollar appeal for an AIDS treatment programme in five African countries. The IFCR is seeking 21 million Swiss francs (13 million euros, 21 million dollars) for a three-year programme in Burkina Faso, the Central African Republic, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Guinea and Nigeria.
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Will Smith, Johnny Depp and Eddie Murphy were the best paid Hollywood actors in the past year, according to Forbes magazine's special issue "Entertainment All Stars." Smith, 39, made 80 million dollars between June 1, 2007 and June 1, 2008, thanks to blockbusters like "I Am Legend," "Hancock" and "The Pursuit of Happyness," for which he was nominated for best actor in the 2007 Oscars.
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Joe Calzaghe's keenly anticipated meeting with American legend Roy Jones Jr has been postponed after the Welshman suffered a hand injury in training. Calzaghe, unbeaten in 45 fights fought mainly at super-middleweight, had been scheduled to meet 39-year-old Jones - who has held world titles at middleweight, super middleweight, light heavyweight and heavyweight - in a light-heavyweight bout at Madison Square Garden, New York, on September 20.
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US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice pressed her North Korean counterpart to move rapidly on new nuclear disarmament steps Wednesday but hailed the "good spirit" at unprecedented six-party talks. Rice said she shook hands twice with North Korean Foreign Minister Pak Ui-Chun who she met for the first time as she and her negotiating partners gave him a "very tough message" for Pyongyang to meet its obligations.
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London-based Internet television service provider Joost said it launched a Chinese service Wednesday with local portal TOM Online to tap the world's largest online market. The company has also set up a joint venture with Hong Kong-listed TOM Group, parent of TOM Online, to bring a full Joost offering to China, Joost said in a statement posted on its website.
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